(MANHATTAN, Kan. – August 16, 2024) — Interim City Manager Jason Hilgers announced today that Assistant City Manager Wyatt Thompson, who oversees major projects and the Building Services Division, has been appointed as interim director of the Public Works Department, starting August 18, 2024.

The Public Works Department provides services and facilities that are vital to the Manhattan community’s health, safety, and welfare, including streets and traffic control devices, storm drainage and flood protection systems, public buildings, and water and wastewater systems.

Under the direction of the Deputy City Manager, the Director of Public Works is responsible for leading, planning, and managing all activities and operations of the department’s 135 full-time employees, its three divisions, and a nearly $50 million annual budget.

Thompson previously served as interim Parks and Recreation Director for a year following the retirement of director Eddie Eastes in May 2022, prior to the hiring of new director Aaron Stewart, who began working in March 2023.

“Wyatt has done a great job of project management in his current role, including overseeing the Animal Shelter contract with Prairie Paws and the CiCo Park project,” Hilgers said. “I have every confidence in him to be able to add these additional duties to his portfolio and excel in doing so for as long as is needed.”

Thompson will take over for interim director Lynden Lawson. “This interim appointment will provide our incoming City Manager with time to make an organizational development decision on operations,” Hilgers explained.

During this interim appointment, Thompson will supervise the administrative support team, Engineering Division, and Street, Fleet, and Stormwater operations team. He also will supervise Public Utilities until September 3, when incoming Director of Public Utilities Kevin Niles will begin employment.

Thompson is a licensed landscape architect who graduated from Kansas State University in 2005 with degrees in landscape architecture and environmental science.

He began working for the City in the Parks and Recreation Department in 2012, holding several roles that included park planner, senior park planner and assistant director, before being named interim director in May 2022.

Thompson served as the lead project manager for the new recreation centers, overseeing all phases of the process from initial feasibility studies in 2014 through construction and opening of facilities in 2021.

Prior to joining the City, he worked eight years in the private sector at engineering firms Schwab-Eaton and HNTB on numerous private development and public infrastructure projects in Kansas and Missouri.

“I am excited about this opportunity to work directly with the team in Public Works and assist Kevin with his transition into leadership of Public Utilities,” Thompson said.

“Manhattan has been my home for 20 years and I know the importance of the work that Public Works does for this community. I am committed to delivering those essential services efficiently and effectively. I am equally committed to our staff, to their training and professional development, and to building a positive work culture — all of which lays the groundwork for their performance and long-term success at the City of Manhattan.”

Thompson’s wife, Kathryn, is a licensed clinical marriage and family therapist who specializes in the treatment of trauma. They have a son, Emmett.